And in that moment, he only saw green
by PraxMatic
Summary: Izuku Midoriya couldn't be a hero. Even All Might said so. However; in that moment, he still found himself running to save Kacchan. Or: the AU where Izuku is kidnapped by the sludge villain (named Surajji Fukumatsu, because he doesn't have a canon name) in their second encounter, and learns that villainy is often beyond one's control.
1. All Might and Surajji

This first chapter is mainly canon stuff being retold for buildup. It splits into the AU near the end if you want to skip stuff you've already heard or read.

* * *

 _Surajji Fukumatsu._

 _26 years old. Male. Single._

 _Current being chased by the #1 hero in all of Japan. As you do._

 _Out of the corner of his eye, he spots a green tuft of hair. This would turn out to be the worst/best decision of his life._

* * *

"I'm sorry, my boy, but without a quirk I cannot simply say you can become a hero. Pros are risking their lives everyday for the masses, including yourself. The best thing you can do for Heroes is to ensure to never intervene in their work. If you truly still wish to help others, you should consider becoming a police officer. That is also a fine line of work."

Accounting for the bright, sunny day, the beautiful city skyline backdrop, and All Might, this moment should have been perfect. It could only be described like it was something from a novel - the protagonist, who had sustained hardship their entire life, would have their skills recognized by a man of great power, and subsequently agreed to let him come under his wing. All his life, Izuku had been told he couldn't become a hero. But right now, it was different. Standing in front of the man who had climbed to the spot of #1, surely he would see how much more Izuku had wanted to be a hero than anyone else. Izuku had beamed with the hope he had kept hidden all of this time. This was the turning point in his life. He knew his dreams could become a reality.

Izuku Midoriya wasn't ready for that answer. The man who was the greatest hero of all time; who never let a death occur after he arrived on the scene, who saved everyone with a bright, shining smile on his face. The man who had saved Izuku not 10 minutes prior. Even he told Izuku that his dreams were unattainable. Izuku felt his lungs filling up, but being completely dry. His eyes watered, but no tears fell. He hadn't earned regret. He hadn't been recognized.

He'd been pitied.

This wasn't like any scenario he could have imagined when he asked. This was much, much worse. It was a complete, thorough disassembling of his dream. He lowered his head away from the man in front of him. He had no words to say. He hadn't earned those, either. All Might lifted from his sitting position and began to walk towards the exit of the roof. As he grabbed the doorknob, Izuku felt his dream leaving with it. The man turned to Izuku, who still had his head down.

"It is with great importance that I stress this these words to you: this is no belittlement. I say this for your own personal safety. I'm sure you have many people in your life who would be devastated if one day you went missing, or worse, due to a villain when you need not to be. For now, those are people you should be looking to save." With that, All Might left through the door. Izuku Midoriya was alone once again.

" _I see_." Midoriya thought. What more was there to say? His teachers, classmates, Kacchan, they all knew already. He had only been confirmed of the Devil he knew, his deep suspicion- even to All Might, he couldn't be a hero. He was heartbroken. He had just wanted to help. And he couldn't give it. He thought to his mom - who had supported him so much over the years. She did every thing he wished for- she even enrolled him in that Martial arts class he'd been in since last year. If nothing else, not help others, he would do it for her. She deserved so much more than he could possible give.

Accounting for the bright, sunny day, the beautiful city skyline backdrop, and All Might, this moment should have been perfect. But for Izuku Midoriya, it was a terrible day for rain.

He left the roof.

Meanwhile, in the Tatooine shopping district, Surajji Fukumatsu found another capable host.

* * *

Izuku drained out the noise as he walked home. He flipped through the pages of his now exploded, burned, and dampened hero analysis book. An entire page was left illegible by Kacchan's handiwork earlier in the day- it was a page about the quirkless, and various fighting techniques one such could apply. There was no way Kacchan would've had time to single out the page when he grabbed it. No, it was destroyed by random chance. Izuku weakly grinned to himself. Even at a cosmic scale, the universe found its own way to butt in on his doubts. Fitting. He kept flipping until he returned to the page of All Might's signature.

 _"I cannot simply say you can become a hero."_ Those words echoed in Izuku's mind. Deep down, he knew All Might was somewhat right. For him, it would be safer to stay out of heroism. Even with a year's worth of Martial arts, he was only a purple belt. But he knew what All Might didn't. The only person who would be devastated at his death would be his mother, and the Katsuki parents. He didn't have any friends. Actually, if it wasn't for Bakugou, no one would even know that he'd've died. They would all assume he finally moved away due to his bullying, and in a month, he'd be a distant thought. All Might couldn't have possibly known what he had gone through. The scars, the pain, the rejection. Izuku grabbed the corner of the paper. He was angry. Angry at himself, angry at All Might, angry at the world, and he began to pull.

 _"But you won't actually do it, will you?"_ he thought. _"You're just angry because you thought you were special. You knew you weren't. You're just mad at All Might because you didn't want to be guilty about what you didn't do for yourself."_

Izuku sighed. He wouldn't do it. Despite his mood, he knew that he could never replace such an item. The autograph was indifferent. When it was signed, there was nothing between him and All Might. There really wasn't anything now, either. He knew All Might wasn't hurtful- even when he was crushing the dreams of someone, he still gave them hope. He was the number 1 hero, after all. Izuku wiped his nose, and closed his book. Now, he could-

A large explosion shook an alleyway Izuku was near, bringing him back to his senses. It must've been from the same area as the one Izuku had heard when he left the roof-he had gonr here without even thinking. "Figures", Izuku sighed. It was just second nature at this point for him to walk towards anywhere there might be heroes. Well, now that he was here, he might as well take notes, after all he wanted-

Izuku grimaced. "I guess it's gonna be a bit harder than that to stop wanting to be hero", he mumbled as he crossed the street. It was a habit over 10 years strong; Izuku knew he would never truly drop it. He re-opened his "Hero Analysis for the Future #13", flipped to the next available page, and was ready to write.

What kind of Villain would even be doing this so publicly, anyways? There's no way he wouldn't know All Might is in town...did he have a death wish, or was he just trying to get All Might's attention? Many villains in the past thought that by fighting All Might they'd be famous, and tried to lure him out, but none of them ever won... so why? He must've been eager to skip town and got caught, but to make so much noise ,he obviously had failed. Either way, it was still plenty for Izuku to write about. He pushed through the crowd of onlookers to see what hero was fighting, only to see something very odd.

There wasn't one. As far as he could see, there weren't any heroes fighting the sludge monster. No wonder the street was so destroyed, no one was here to stop them. Who was so dumb as to cause so much ruckus, anyway? Izuku scanned the fire ridden alleyway. Perhaps some flame ability, like his father had, or some explosion quirk. Another explosion helped him locate the villain.

To say Izuku's stomach sank would be a comedy act. He felt like he was being pulled down by an anchor to the bottom of the ocean. How was the sludge villain here? How had he gotten away from All Might? Izuku's head suddenly rattled with familiar words.

 _"The best thing you can do for Heroes is to ensure to never intervene in their work."_ It was his fault. He had distracted All Might. The sludge villain must have fallen out of All Might's pocket's in flight. Wait, what? Izuku's mind shifted into overdrive. How could the sludge villain be causing this? Unless he had a mix of two quirks, this fire should be impossible, and even if so he would've shown it earlier against All Might. Maybe he was using his force to cause explosions in pipelines and such? No, the shopping district is all stand-market based, so there'd be no way to set off an explosion...then how?

"Why isn't a hero coming? The villain has a hostage, for Christ's sake!" a bystander (conveniently) yelled. A hostage? That would explain it. Many villains took hostages when they were on their back foot, so it seemed likely the sludge villain thought All Might was still hot on his trail. But Izuku knew he wasn't coming; the hero had spent the last of his time with a quirkless kid. He would've likely been able to simply set out the fires with a single mighty punch. He wasn't going to now. There weren't many heroes that were good with fire that were stationed in Mustafu, either. The local fire department took care of most of the incidents, and since they were stationed all around Japan, were generally more available than those who specialized with water-based quirks. Who in the world was powerful enough to create this much fire, anyway? It definitely wasn't Endeavor under there, and Izuku couldn't think of any pros with fire or explosion-based quirks. In fact, the only person he could have thought of with this kind of quirk was...

This day had now gone from bad, to worse, to impossible. In the grasps of the sludge villain, with wide, paling eyes, was Kacchan. The person who had bullied him, scarred him, belittled him, now needed a hero more than Izuku ever had. But Izuku couldn't do anything for him. He didn't have a quirk, and he would've died earlier if All Might hadn't saved him. All he could do was sit here and wait for a hero with a suitable quirk to arrive. He was useless once again. He felt tears welling up in his eyes, and he looked at Kacchan.

Kacchan looked back at him.

Izuku leaped out from the crowd into the burning alley. He truly had learned nothing. Despite the person in front of him, how cruel he was, he still needed help. And Izuku would give it to him. The crowd roared behind him.

"Is he **suicidal**? Why isn't he waiting for a hero?" Izuku knew he wasn't suicidal. Why should they wait for heroes when someone is suffering? This is what a pro would do. Except for one thing- Izuku didn't know what to do. He just knew he had to do something. That's why he ran- because he knew he could do good. He stumbled as he approached the sludge villain, who turned round to meet him.

"Why the hell are you here, you damned brat? All Might won't save you again! If he were coming, he'd already be here! I'll _REALLY_ kill you this time if you want to die so damn much!" Izuku kept running. It was too late for him to run away. The sludge villain raised his left hand and shot it towards him. Izuku ducked and rolled as it pounded the cement behind him.

 _"Anything, think of anything Izuku"_ he thought. _"Your notes. You remember them. What would a pro do?"_ Izuku didn't know if he was thinking too much or not at all. He grabbed his notebook; the same one that was burned by the person in front of him, signed by a person above him, which carried details of his own quirklessness and how he would overcome it. And he threw it directly at the monster's eyes. Realistically, it should've failed. The book should've missed, or had no effect, or barely stagger the villain, but it sent him seething backwards, and relinquishing his hold on Kacchan. Kacchan fell the the ground, coughing profusely. Izuku ran and put his hand around him. "Kacchan? Are you okay? Come on, we need to get out of really quickly!" He looked back to the sludge monster who was quickly recovering from the attack. Right, it was a book. "Come on let's go, we're not going to be saved by-"

"Fear not children, for I AM HERE! A little later than I would've liked, but here!" izuku looked back, and before him stood everything he wanted to be. All Might, the #1 hero, the symbol of peace. Despite being past his limit, he would never let someone die after he arrived on the scene. To All Might, seeing Izuku dash from the crowd when no one else did convinced him- he was avoiding his own truths. A Pro Hero always puts his life on the line for the good of others, and now was no different. He turned to the awed Izuku. "Young Midoriya, you have done more than well enough. Let me finish it for you." He turned the sludge monster, disgusted. "Villain! Turn yourself in now and you will spare yourself a longer sentence in prison! I've defeated you once, and i'll do it as many times as I need!" The sludge villain's eye twitched convulsively.

"You PRICK! Why are you _just now_ showing up? Just to give me false hope? You're not better than me, you just get recognized for your deeds! I didn't get shit!" he yelled. Despite his words, Surajji knew he stood no chance. No one did against All Might.

"W-we're saved..." Izuku gasped, crying. He would live knowing he had helped someone. He could be a hero!

"Like HELL I'm doing that, All Might! You pros are all the same! I'll get punished just as much, YOU JUST DON'T WANT TO SULLY YOUR PERFECT LITTLE HANDS!" The sludge villain was trying to buy time-what for, Izuku didn't know. But they both knew one thing- nothing could be done against All Might.

"I see. Then, you have brought this upon yourself in the name of Justice." All Might lunged towards Surajji. Surajji veered to his left, near to where Izuku and Bakugou were kneeling.

In the next second, several things happened. First, all Might impacted with part of Surajji. Second, that part of him went flying into the air, and the fire that consumed the alley was immediately put out. Third, he grabbed a child from the Villain's clutches. Those 1st and 3rd steps were the problems. He only held a blond boy in his hands, and he hadn't made direct contact with the sludge villain.

Izuku, however, saw only blackness cover him as the sludge villain grabbed him. He felt himself being pulled downward, and for a single second, swore he saw All Might confused.

Fourth, All Might saw the villain leap into an open sewage pipe, and the lid being pulled over by a mass of green sludge.

The villain had escaped. And when he looked around, what he didn't see scared him the most.

Fifth, Izuku Midoriya was gone.

* * *

Hope ya'll liked it. I hadn't seen anything like this (Izuku losing his 2nd encounter with the sludge villain), so when it popped into my head I knew I had to do it. I'll probably upload the next chapter Wednesday or earlier. Also, did you no there's no character tag or the sludge villain? Weird. _#SludgeLivesMatterToo_


	2. The Situation I'm in

It didn't feel like long after until Izuku felt his eyes begrudgingly forcing themselves open. The room he found himself in was dark and barren. In it was nothing except for a cupboard, an exit that seemed to lead downstairs, and the bed he was laying on. There was no noise emulating from the downstairs. The entire room was silent, as if it held only ghosts. As he further inspected, the place he had found himself in was very run down, and extremely poorly maintained. The walls were slick with what appeared to be water and the ceiling had several cracks in it. Something wasn't quite right.

Izuku shifted in his bed. This didn't resemble his mother's house or his school. Where was he? Izuku recalled what had happened just before this. The last he could remember, he had ran to the sludge villain to save Kacchan, All Might appeared, and then Izuku's eyes were drowned in darkness...perhaps he had blacked out after seeing All Might again. That seemed likely (he wasn't exactly ready to see the man who had just belittled him to then praise him in combat), but if so, then why did his surrounding seem so oppressive? He definitely wasn't in a hospital, the building was much too poorly maintained for that to be the case. Perhaps he was brought to the nearest available house so he could rest? No, knowing All Might, he could've gotten to a much better place in the same amount of time. The silence wasn't helping either- he figured at least someone would be with him if he truly had fainted- if not in his room, at least downstairs. There were too many variables to consider, not enough information. In Izuku's best guess, he assumed that he had fainted, and then All Might, in fear of Izuku's health, brought him to the nearest abandoned building to rest, and the left to get further medical assistance. In that case, All Might should be arriving any moment now.

Izuku's head started to pound. He probably had thought about it too much. After all, he did jump into a narrow alleyway full of fire- he was probably suffering from light headedness. Izuku hated to have bothered All Might so much in the event of his hypothesis being correct- the pro probably had much better ways to spend his time rather than caring for a quirkless kid. He sighed, and began to shift in his bed. The least Izuku could do was greet him at the door downstairs when he arrived, to assure All Might he was fine. He began to rise from the wool blankets (wet, too, he had noted), until he was stopped by a metal clank and a pull on his wrist. What? He was probably still imagining things, or was too tired from blacking out. His head heated up further. Maybe he did actually need some medicine, which was all the more reason to get downstairs sooner. He lifted himself by the body once again, this time to be stopped by two metallic clanks and his wrists being pulled yet again. What on earth was wrong with him? He turned to his left arm- perhaps he had simply lost blood flow in them.

His left wrist was chained to the bottom of the bed. Izuku's breathing slowed to a halt as he turned his head to his right side. His right wrist was chained as well. He panickingly looked to his feet. Unlike his wrists, they were left unchained. Despite that being good news, that was the least of Izuku's worries right now. He was alone, in a down-trodden apartment, chained to a bed. There was no fathomable explanation Izuku could come up with. No way would All Might do this, his reputation as a hero would plummet, it's not even remotely possible that this was All Might's doing. Izuku began to panic. He heard no noise, was chained to a bed, and had a headache that was now getting even worse. However; those weren't the things that scared him the most. No, not even close.

He had absolutely no information. He was in an unknown environment with no recollection of _how_ he got there, no information as to _why_ he was there, and _no_ explanation as to why he was chained. There were so many questions circulating in his head, he forgot as to whether or not he should be panicking right now. His head felt like splitting, convincing him to stop his thoughts. Izuku rested his body back onto the mattress. There was nothing to be done. He couldn't leave the bed, and definitely wasn't going to casually call out for help in such a place. All he could do was sit, and wait.

If Izuku's memory served him any good, he knew there was no way he wasn't being searched for by All Might- the man had too much pride to let someone be unrightfully imprisoned. But in Izuku's mind, worst-possible scenarios quickly overtook the good ones. Had he died, and was in purgatory? Was he kidnapped? Was he overthinking this entire situation? Probably, but there was no solace to be found if he was. There were no positives to look at. Izuku eyed the ceiling and pondered. He hoped, at least, that Kacchan was okay. The last thing Izuku wanted was for his efforts to go to naught.

 _"Might as well go back to sleep...better than sitting here worrying about it,_ " he thought. He felt the blankets cover over him, heating his clammy body. Izuku's eyes began to falter. Perhaps, when he woke up, he would be somewhere else...

A loud chink emulated from downstairs, only for a door to be shut right after. Izuku immediately sprang upright, only to be encumbered by his chains again. Had All Might arrived? At this point, Izuku didn't care who showed up, he just needed someone to tell him that he was ok. That's what he really wanted- an explanation. He was sure however did this to him had good intentions, but either executed them poorly or had too little experience handling with this kind of situation. "Hello?" Izuku yelled. "Whoever's here, i'm fine! I appreciate you taking care of me, but the chains were a bit unnecessary...could you come and get me out of the bed?" Izuku noted, his speech didn't falter. He hadn't even stuttered, which was an accomplishment in and of itself. He was just happy that whoever was downstairs could tell him what was going on.

No one responded. This was getting very, very odd. There was no reason for silence from whoever was downstairs, so why was it just as it was from before? Had his ears betrayed him? Izuku knew he probably had a headache, but if he was now imagining sounds so realistic, he really needed help. Maybe he just spoke too softly, and his headache had convinced otherwise. He called out again. "Is anyone there? Really, I'm fine! I would r-really r-rather not be chained a-anymore, so if y-you could help...". Izuku gulped. He was nervous now- no other reason for his stuttering to return. Despite his calls, it remained silent.

The atmosphere thickened. Izuku _knew_ he had heard a door open, he wasn't crazy, and he didn't recall any mute heroes, so there was _absolutely, positively, inexplicably_ no reason for no one to call back to him. Suddenly, the stairs below him creaked ever so slightly. Izuku's heart plummeted- the noise was far too small for it to have come form All Might stepping on the staircase. So All Might hadn't saved him? That simply wasn't possible, All Might saved everyone. He didn't have any interns, and no others heroes were on the scene where the sludge villain had appeared. Whoever was approaching him was an unknown entity.

Suddenly, a figure appeared just above the stairs. He walked into the room and stared directly at Izuku. He did not look happy to see him.

It was a man in his mid-twenties, wearing a plain grey hoodie that held no words. He was in loose blue jeans, and was wearing sandals who's straps held on with the last of their might. His hair was a deep shade of green, comparable to Izuku's, and his eyes were covered by black shades. He almost looked..normal, until Izuku noticed his hands. From far away, they might pass to be normal, but upon closer inspection, they were an odd sight. They were noticeably slimy, and looked as if his entire hand was made of...sludge. Looking back on it, Izuku knew he should have immediately made the connection. He didn't, and remained immobilized by the man's threatening nature.

He approached the right sight of Izuku's bed, and squatted. Slowly, a grin crept upon the man's face. Whether it be malicious, or petty, or genuine happiness, Izuku didn't know. He grasped his palms together.

"Kid, for someone so unwittingly cautious, you really seem to not understand the situation we're _both_ in right now." Izuku knew he should've taken the words as a threat. Whoever this man was, he wasn't planning anything good for him. But his voice also held a subtle undertone- if Izuku hadn't practiced picking up on people's real messages when they spoke to him, perhaps, if he hadn't have been quirkless, it would've slipped by him. But the man standing before him, one who had somehow escaped from All Might himself...was scared. His words carried urgency and fright- the situation _he_ was in. Slowly, the man took of his glasses to reveal two darken, sullied eyes. They almost appeared to be black. But, deep in his eyes, almost as if buried, Izuku saw green. He spoke again.

"My name is Surajji Fukumatsu. I don't know you. But you know me." Did Izuku? He looked completely unnoticeable- if you were to not count his hands, then-

His hands. When he had held them apart earlier, they appeared to be somewhat slimy. But now, grasped together, their complexion had changed. They were now a deep, dark green, and were indistinguishable from one another. Almost if they had fused. As if...they were made of sludge. Izuku's eyes widened rapidly, and he opened his mouth to yell out for help- anyone, _anyone,_ help, he's with a _villain_ -

The sludge villain removed his left hand and used it to cover Izuku' mouth. "You fuckin brat, keep it down! You're gonna get me killed!" Izuku stood down. He was stupid, but he wasn't incompetent. The sludge villain could easily put him under if he wanted. He slowed his breathing down and looked Surajji in the eyes. Nothing but indifference looked back.

"Ah, now you understand the situation you're in. And now, I'm gonna tell you the situation _I'M_ in, ok?" He clearly wasn't going to take no for an answer. Izuku slowly nodded- the best thing he could do right now was to ensure he complied with the villain. Surajji cleared his breath.

"I fucking hate you more than I've hated anything in my entire life. You've gotten me distracted and nearly caught twice now by the greatest 'hero' known to man, and for all I known he's still chasing me right now. But hey, we all make mistakes right? Lord knows I've made a fucking few to get here. So i'm gonna cut you a deal, kid. That form you saw me in? That ain't the real one. Just a use of my quirk. Now that All might mcfuckface has blown of so much of my god damn slime, I can't be the sludge monster. Are following?" Izuku nodded. Was he going to take Izuku's body as his own? Was he trying to recollect his slime? That wasn't feasible, most of it would've been confiscated by now. That was probably what Surajji was worried about.

"And in one of the slime samples they're gonna collect, I can guarantee they find some DNA that links back to me. As far as the government knows, my quirk makes my hands slimy. But they'll make the connection. So now can I not only _not_ put on my sludge disguise, but in whoever knows how long I won't be able to walk around normally without being caught. And that ain't great, because I've got a few people who would be less than thrilled if they found out I can't do the work they want me to do for 'em anymore. So. You're gonna help me run a few 'errands' in Mustafu. And you're gonna do them without question. And I'm gonna stop taking requests. And when I run out of requests, I bail out on town, and you get to go free. And you tell everyone that you manged to escape while I was sleeping, and _nothing. Else._ Do I make my terms very clear, boy?" Izuku gulped.

"Y-yes.." He knew Surajji was serious. He meant every word he said- including the errands that were in no doubt villainous actions. That was the last thing Izuku wanted- but he didn't have a choice. As long as he didn't need to kill, he could tough through it. Izuku knew he was about to overstep his bounds, but he still wanted to be a hero. He looked Surajji in the eyes. "I won't kill anyone." He wouldn't. He didn't care if he was caught looting, vandalizing, or whatever- he could explain those when he was let go. But he wouldn't kill. No one deserved to die. He wanted to help others, and once this nightmare was over, he would. He would prove that he had a heart of a hero. Surajji chuckled.

"Do you really believe you're in a position to make demands? You know how my quirk works. Ya think I'm sent to steal from daisy shops? Kid, if you think my hands are clean, you've got another thing coming." With that, he stood up, and walked to the staircase. He looked back at Izuku, who was visibly defiant. The kid reminded him of himself when he was younger. Full of hope and heroic spirit. And something in him broke- he couldn't do it. The only reason he was here is because he was blackmailed the same way. He knew how much he regretted his choices. And he knew it wouldn't be as simple as ditching town to get away from crime. But he didn't want another kid forcibly stained like he was. This kid deserved the choice. He grinned.

"Okay, kid. You want to keep your hands clean? You try your best. But there will come a time you'll see something you love being hurt. And when that time comes, how far will you go to protect it? Give it some thought." With that, Surajji made his way downstairs behind a still silent Izuku.

He knew he had given that question a whole lot of thought himself.

* * *

 _Thanks for all the reviews on the first chapter! I was trying to get this chapter out on Wednesday, but I kept re-writing it because I didn't like the way the events portrayed Surajji. Next chapter is probably gonna be a very angsty Bakugou and a very sad Mama Midoriya ;-;. See y'all soon!_


	3. A Heated Discussion

When it came to kidnappings, detective Tsukauchi's least favorite part was dealing with the victim's families. Since the arrival of quirks, while crime had not increased overall, it was a fact that missing person's cases were left unresolved nearly 60% more often. He'd learnt through many cases that there were simply no words that could be said to completely put them at peace. Within police regulations, he isn't allowed to share any information on the case, so he ends up repeating himself over and over again- "We're doing everything we can", "I know it must be hard", and the all-mighty "We'll find them." If he didn't know any better, he would've become numb to those words, but he knew the importance they held to the families. Still, for Tsukauchi, they were just regulation. It was to be expected.

And so, it was understandable for Tsukauchi _not_ to expect All Might coming into his office midday in his injured form. All Might rarely ever visited him during work hours, and if he did, he was very strict about maintaining his muscle form. It was one of his many secrets that Tsukauchi knew. A much less secret fact was All Might's impeccable record sheet- he'd never let a death or escape occur on scene after he'd arrived. And after a brief conversation, Tsukauchi found himself doing something he'd never done before- filing a missing persons case with All Might as the first reporter.

With that came the logistics: witnesses, acquaintances, family connections, investigations. All the things that occurred when a case like this arises- but it held a sinister overtone. The only cases when a kidnapping made national news was when it was a backstory to the hero saving them. However; this was more. For the first time in All Might's career, his record had been stained. And he would have no real way to explain to the media why he couldn't find the victim or pursue the villain. Tsukauchi looked over the case notes- and there were _too many_ points. Nearly a hundred on-site witnesses, All Might's conversation with Izuku earlier, no other heroes on scene, no known motivation, the fact that the villain had kidnapped _the very same kid_ that he had tried and failed to earlier, and the fact that All Might had actually saved a kid- " _Bakugou Katsuki, contact later"_ he wrote down- but not managed to save Izuku. He looked at Midoriya's file. It was typical, except fokir one little difference that would make whom All Might had saved a much more heated issue. Under the category "Quirk", Izuku Midoriya was marked "Quirkless." Tsukauchi groaned, and picked up his phone to call the registered number of Inko Midoriya.

This was not going to bode well for anyone involved.

* * *

Bakugou Katsuki arrived at the police station early Saturday morning, at the "polite" request and subsequent dragging of his mother to be interviewed by the police. What for, Bakugou had no fucking clue. He didn't know anything about Midoriya. With his luck, the brat was probably somewhere in an alley unconscious waiting to be found. And that had nothing to do with Bakugou. Why did he even fucking care, anyway? Deku was the one who got himself kidnapped by jumping in like a dumbass right before All Might came. There's no way the nerd didn't fucking know All Might wasn't in town, so it was so uncharacteristically STUPID for Deku to do something so fucking dumb. All Deku had accomplished was worrying the shit out of their parents and then wasting his time with questions that he couldn't FUCKING ANSWER. He was fucking quirkless, what could he have done-

"Okay kid, I can see you steaming from here. I don't care if you fucking like it you prick just go in there and answer their damn questions", Mitsuki interrupted. This entire experience for her had been disastrous, with both the handling of Inko and her son's utter denial to in any way contribute. Mitsuki knew they weren't on the best of terms, but shouldn't Bakugou at least care somewhat about the kidnapping of someone who had tried to save him? Why- wait, how was she still thinking? Normally her thick-headed son would've interrupted her by now, but he hadn't said a word. As they entered the building, she looked back to her son, startled. "Katsuki, are you actually-"

"Mrs. Bakugou, thank you for coming on such short notice," Tsukauchi interjected. Whatever she was about to say, it was only going to put Bakugou in worse mood than he already looked to be in. Couldn't let the POI be startled during an investigation. "I really appreciate you taking the time to come here and I'm sure I won't take up much of yours. Bakugou was Midoriya's friend correct? I'll just take him upstairs and we can get this over with quickly." He was _really_ rushing it now. Katsuki looked like he was ready to explode. He ushered him to follow him up the stairs and Katsuki quietly obliged. If looks could kill, Tsukauchi'd be 10 feet under.

"Wait, detective, I think you have a misconception about Izuku and katsuki, they aren't-" and with that, they were gone. She sat down and looked at the empty hallway. She had just sent in a time bomb into a enclosed room. _"God, help that detective detective not detain Bakugou for being such a hot-headed asshole."_

~In the investigation room~

Tsukauchi closed the door behind them and pointed a seat to Bakugou before he sat down. He adjusted his notes and looked up to angriest witness he'd probably ever seen, even with 9 years in the force. He cleared his throat and was about to begin. Something told him this was going to take up a lot of Mrs. Katsuki's time. "Now, I-"

"I don't want to fucking be here." Katsuki growled.

Good start. Tsukauchi didn't flinch and continued his work. With any luck, he'd be able to pave over Katsuki's obvious noncooperation with the case.

"I know, Katsuki. No one wants to be here. But for the sake of your friend Midoriya, we'd both like to get this done thoroughly." Tsukauchi noted that Katsuki had flinched when he referred to him as a friend of Midoriya. Interesting. "I have a couple of questions about Midoriya and the days leading up to the attack." Katsuki's eyebrows raised.

"Why on earth would you want to know where the dipsh- guy was before the attack?" Fuck. He'd nearly cussed in front of a _fucking police officer._ Tsukauchi continued.

"It's important we recollect his movements and anything he might've done or been done to that would influence his decision to jump and help you, Katsuki. Now, do you know anyone who would hold an ill will towards Izuku Midoriya?" The question was basically moot- he was a quirkless kid, and from Katsuki's reactions to his words the two obviously didn't get along. But then why'd Midoriya jump in?

"No. He didn't have any friends, and nobody hung around him." Katsuki steeled himself. Absolutely no missteps can be made here. One wrong word, and he could get shit on his record to prevent him going to U.A. And if that happened, he'd find Izuku just to kill him himself for ruining his life.

"You say he had no friends, but he clearly jumped out to help you. Why would he do that if that were the case?" _Fuck._ Misstep #1 already made. Tsukauchi obviously wasn't buying what he was being fed.

"He's a hero nerd. He still wants to be a hero despite his lack of a quirk and he probably thought jumping into a position he was unqualified to address would steel his resolve and get him praise." Good answer, Katsuki thought. Keep it in neutral and ride it until this entire ordeal was over.

"Possibly, I've heard he was a hero fanatic. But, you don't think it was anything else, Katsuki?" Tsukauchi questioned. Katsuki was lying, but he didn't know why. He'd learnt from All Might that the boy had the hero's heart, and wanted to be a hero just for the sake of helping others. Izuku obviously held Katsuki's well being over his own, which still confused him as to why Katsuki on-scene appeared to visibly reject Midoriya's help.

"What kind of question is that? What else could it be?" What was the detective pressuring him for? He'd given a good answer, and he knows about Izuku's fucking overbearing love of heroes. Tsukauchi knew something he didn't.

"Could he not have been just looking to help, Katsuki? Surely, as his friend, you'd have done the same no?" Tsukauchi didn't know himself why he was clamping down on a middle schooler for details. But his intuition told him something was hidden in their relationship, and it could easily be a deciding factor in Izuku's motive for help. He saw Katsuki's eyes narrow and his jaw tighten.

"If he was looking to help, he did a lousy job. He got a lucky shot against someone he had no chance against. He's lucky All Might showed up right after and all he did in the process was get himself kidnapped." Tsukauchi sullied. Of course, the kid couldn't have known why All Might had jumped in at that moment. His time limit wasn't public. Had Midoriya not been there, it's likely this would have ended up as a homicide. He couldn't explain why Katsuki was wrong- another reason why this case involving All Might made it so much more finicky.

"Perhaps. Are you not grateful that Midoriya would hold you in a high enough regard to endanger himself to save you?"

"He shouldn't have done it in the first place. That's the end of it."

"That doesn't answer the question, Katsuki. Are you grateful for his help?" This was turning into a much more heated witness recount than Tsukauchi had expected.

"Because of what he's gone and done, and the mess he's left everyone with? Then no. I'm not grateful." Even when he was gone, Midoriya was still proving to be a major pain in the ass. He'd gone and caught himself kidnapped and know he's wasting Katsuki's time and running his own mother's stress up the wall. Katsuki re-affirmed himself and looked the detective in the eye. Tsukauchi knew he'd likely just shot his own investigation by pushing so hard. God, what a rookie mistake. Now he had excess information for a motive he didn't need and nothing anywhere else. He needed to get them before the investigation was over.

"Where was Midoriya during school?"

"...at school?"

"Do you know why Midoriya was out so late into the evening?"

"No."

Do you know anything about his kidnapper?"

"No."

Do you know why the villain assaulted you?"

"No." That was lie. Tsukauchi'd have to find out later.

"Do you know why no other heroes were there?"

"No." Tsukauchi was getting nowhere. He looked down into his notes, and was filled with information he'd already known. This investigation was over. However; he felt he still needed to ask. Just in in case it might shed light on their murky relationship.

"Were you and Midoriya on good terms to the events leading up to the attack?" Bakugou reeled back. Why the fuck would he want to know? Or did he already? One of his fucking lackeys probably sold him out for what he said earlier! No, no, no, _NO_ it does NOT FUCKING END HERE. The detective clearly knew something. But how much? How much could Katsuki lie right now without his bluff being called? He gulped as he realized- none. If he lied right here, he'd definitely be brought back later for more questioning. But if he told the truth, he could kiss goodbye to any chance he had at U.A. _"God, even if I still fucking make it in i'll fucking find and kill Deku myself!"_ he thought. Oh god, he still hadn't answered the fucking question! Tsukauchi was boring down on him. One last shot. Can't lie. Can't be honest.

"No, I- we weren't." AND HE'D FUCKING STUTTERED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HIS GODDAMN LIFE. Now it's fucking over, Deku's last act in this world was ruining his life and he'd have to fucking go to a public school. God, he'd fucking give ANYTHING to be out of here right now-

"Thank you for your time Katsuki. You may go." Katsuki hastily took the given retreat and left the office.

Tsukauchi had heard enough. It was clear by now that the two didn't get along. Tsukauchi was glum. From what he had heard from Yagi, Izuku impressed him with his on-the-spot thinking and his compassion for others. Yagi had told him he'd possibly have offered one for All to the kid. And now, given this interview, he now knew that the person Izuku wanted to save didn't like him, and didn't want his help. Given the nature of his investigation, he had to make note of it, and to tell Yagi himself. He knew Yagi well enough that his decision would be made after hearing what happened between the two. And then, when Izuku Midoriya was found, a kid he'd never even seen would be granted One for All. He groaned. This case was going to be the death of him.

* * *

Surajji grinned. "See? Told ya, kid. A pair of shades and a hoodie cover up better than any quirk." Izuku Midoriya stood in front of a shattered mirror wearing an over sized wet hoodie, and glasses that nearly fell of his eyes. Notably, however, were the completely dry pants and school shoes in contrast with his upper half. You could say he looked like a homeless person with half a home. Well, looking at it now, perhaps it wasn't the most _elaborate_ disguise for the most searched for kid in Mustafu. His smile fell. "Yeah, I might actually need to get you an actual pair of clothes. Eh." Surajji chuckled. "Guess we'll just have to get em _while we're there._ " Izuku was silent. "C'mon kid, that was a good joke! Jeez, you need a sense of humor."

"We're not killing on this one, right?" Jesus, the kid was serious about that. He wasn't gonna make through if half the time he was having a damn moral crisis. He was probably gonna try to run away, anyways. Surajji would have to prepare for that.

"Daisy shops, kid. Daisy shops. You ain't. I am." If anything, the kid had a glare to match the one his friend had. "I know you don't care for it. But it's gonna happen." He handed Izuku a knife. "Take it. Target's got a nasty quirk, and he'll probably go after you." Izuku remained motionless, staring him down. "Kid, if you don't take the fucking knife I'll bury you with it." Izuku knew he wasn't serious- but his tone gave him enough confidence that it wasn't completely off the table. He grabbed the knife and slid it into his hoodie pouch, all while staring Surajji down. "See? You get it already. Fast learner." He walked towards the door and Izuku followed him.

Target #1: Ex- employer of his contractor who managed to cover his tracks by paying for a look overhaul and getting a job at a high-end clothing store.

Details: Make sure he never gets a chance to sell them out.


	4. A Shadow on the Stairs (1)

For the second time in what seemed like less than a day, Izuku found himself waking up in an eerily familiar room. The same gray, wet wall and ceiling greeted him, seemingly getting worse for wear despite the amount of time he'd assumed had passed. At first glance, it appeared as if he had dreamt his entire first encounter. However; for better or for worse, there were two things that indicated that he hadn't. First, he heard noises that were a perfect match to the ones he had heard from Surajji. He couldn't quite clearly make out what he was saying, but it was probably irrelevant to Izuku's situation. The better, and more obvious indicator, was the lack of handcuffs on both of his wrists. And that confirmed his suspicion- despite the obvious lack of handcuffs on him right now, he still had marks on his wrists akin to those which handcuffs would leave. So, everything that had happened yesterday after All Might had _actually happened._ Which means he was currently being held prisoner by an on-the-run villain who was going to use Izuku to help him complete his contracts, and then bail town. The same villain whose only reason to not kill Izuku was the fact that he could no longer properly use his quirk and was going to need some discrete extra help to get his jobs done.

Izuku still had no real reason to trust Surajji. While he was essentially a gimped version of his former self, Izuku held doubts that he wasn't exactly needed for Surrajji's help. From his own description of his situation, no one actually knew what he looked like in his non-sludge monster form, which meant it'd be more likely he'd be able to sneak up on his targets. Although, granted, from Izuku had saw, Surajji wasn't exactly a quiet worker. There seemed to be some other reason he was still alive, but for what? Izuku couldn't say. Izuku only that he _was_ alive, and he'd prefer it to stay that way. With his thoughts mostly cleared, he lifted up from his bed an walked to the singular downward staircase. He noted that he was still in his school clothes, and thought of how impossible it would be for him to not get seen walking down the street. The entire situation seemed logistically impossible from Izuku's standpoint- how on earth could Surrajji possibly hope to keep Izuku from escaping or being rescued if they were actively going out into public to complete these contracts? He steeled himself as him slowly crept down the stairs- he wouldn't have to play along with Surajji for very long. Heroes would save him- that's what they were paid to do. As he reached the bottom of the stairs, he could more clearly hear whatever or whoever it was that Surajji was talking to.

"Do I need to give a reason? I just don't want to take you up on that one." _On that one_? Despite the overwhelming feeling that he shouldn't be listening into this conversation, Izuku felt compelled to due so- maybe it would give him useful information about who exactly Surajji was.

" _Never...before._ " The response on the cell phone was muffled, barely audible to Izuku. Never before? Never before what? He could see Surajji's brow furrow.

"It hasn't been that long. And what about that? I've got a full plate, Kuro. One too many of these kind of deals and I'm going to end up on y'alls 'In Memorium' list. I've seen it. Fuckin brutal. Yeah, no thanks." God, what they talking about? Surajji's contracts? That seemed most likely, so then what about an 'In Memorium' list? Did people like Surajji often die on these jobs? If so, how on earth was Surajji still alive? And who was Kuro? This conversation seemed to be opening up way more holes than it was plugging for Izuku.

" _Could it...your...has...Might?"_ Whatever this Kuro had said, it obviously sent Surajji into panic mode. He was visibly sweating now- it seemed odd to see the man who had just interrogated him the day before lose his composure so quickly.

"C'mon Kuro, you know me better than that. I can take a hit or two and still be in commission. Trust me, I'm 100% ready to go." From Izuku's view point, that was a complete and utter lie. Whatever Surajji was lying about, he obviously didn't believe the words he was saying. Izuku recalled his conversation with Surajji earlier- he could no longer be the sludge monster. Whoever he was talking to couldn't have possibly known that fact, but from Surajji's words it seemed that they were doubtful at the very least.

" _And...child? What...with him?"_ Izuku wan't daft enough for this to go over his head. His entire encounter with the sludge monster in the Tatooine shopping district was no doubt all over local headlines by now. Which means, subsequently, he was definitely being searched for right now. They wouldn't find him here, at the very least. So this "Kuro" was inquiring about him- but what for? Izuku's best guess was that Kuro was probably interested in the reason Surajji had still left him alive, which was, again, impossible for Surajji to explain without revealing his current disability.

"Eh. Nothing, really. Might keep him alive for a while. From what I'd heard earlier, kid got his dreams crushed by All Might so hey, maybe once I'm done with him y'all could take him and see what your 'Sensei' can do with him." Once he's done with me? What? Was the plan not to let him go free after his jobs were done? Either Surajji was just trying to bluff his way out of the conversation, or he had lied to Izuku. Given where his allegiance seemed to fall, the latter seemed more likely, which brought upon a horrible truth to Izuku- Surajji was likely never planning on just letting him go. Why would he? If he did, he'd just get himself caught faster. How had Izuku not figured that out? He was about to gulp down the bile that was building up in his throat when he saw Surajji stand up and walk nearer to him. Izuku just barely managed to hide behind the staircase wall and the voice in the phone became clearer, and louder. Had Izuku not seen the phone, he would've assumed this person was in the same room as them.

" _T_ _his 'Izuku Midoriya' is the most sought after prize for every hero in Japan right now. And from my point of view, your 'keeping him alive' is not only endangering yourself to his escape, but us if you are caught in the result of said escape. You are aware many of your targets are those like yourself who posses information that could easily be used against us? So I propose, to you, two options. Kill the child. Or, should that not be to your fancy, you will bring him to use, and we will kill him."_

 _"_ WHAT? WHY ARE Y'ALL GONNA KILL HIM?" Surajji blurted. Izuku paled behind his wall. He was going to die. All Might's words reverberated in his head - " _For now, those are people you should be looking to save."_ He had failed at even that. He couldn't even be a hero for his own mother. Why? Why did he have to die here? Just yesterday, he'd held hope of getting of of here with his morals intact. Now, he'd give anything to simply survive. "He hasn't done anything yet! I know we're villains, but c'mon man-"

 _"This is one of the many reasons why assets such as yourself are falling out of favor, Surajji. Absolutely no situational awareness. I want you to go upstairs."_ Izuku froze. What? Why upstairs? Was there something he didn't know?

"What? Why are you pulling my leg, Kuro?"

 _"Do it. I trust you'll then see my point of view on the matter."_ Surajji groaned.

"Fine. Tell you what man, you can be creepy as shit sometimes." Izuku heard footsteps approaching him. This was bad. He _really_ wasn't supposed to hear this conversation. He racked his brain- he could make up the stairs in time most likely- but what then? Surajji would obviously hear him fumbling up the stairs. He gulped and and began to turn around, at the very least he had to get out of sight-

On the top of the stairs stood a shadow of a man. He had no body- only darkness surrounding him. He had two, piercing, yellow eyes that seemed to flow with the encroaching darkness around him. He was perhaps the most non-human like entity Izuku had ever seen. Which, considering so, made it more frightening that the glare of his shadowy eyes froze Izuku's veins more that Kacchan ever had. Had Izuku more time to think, he would have noted the unusual attire the person was wearing- clothes that seemed to resemble a bartender. Izuku heard Surajji come behind him, who heard a phone click off in the palm of his hand as he saw the two figures on the stairs. "Wait, what the fuck-"

"I believe you can now picture why I want this child dead, Surajji. Thanks to your carelessness, he has overheard who knows how much of our conversation. Under these circumstances, he would be an exceptional target for one of your contracts, would he not? So, my proposal stands. This child's death can do nothing but help us- _the one that All Might couldn't save._ Imagine the blow to All Might's reputation- despite his many deeds, he will be remembered for the stain on his record. I know you do not fully understand the League's motivation- and you need not to. Kill the child. Or I will." Izuku's mind shattered. He felt light-headed- _he was going to die._ The last thing he remembered before fainting was being caught by a familiar set of hands...

* * *

Surajji barely had enough to to save Izuku from falling down the flight of stairs. Kurogiri remained silent as Surajji sat Izuku down on chair next to the table and returned to the staircase. He was infuriated by Kurogiri's unexpected entrance into his house, and for more than one reason.

"I never told you where I lived, Kuro. That was one of the conditions when I first started working for you." Surajji glared at the shadow in front of him. Kurogiri's appearance always offset him a little, but he wasn't quite sure why. Something about the man's stature gave the _"I could kill you, but I have better uses of my time"_ vibe. Nevertheless, seeing Kurogiri in his own house was enough to counteract those feelings.

"And you think I did not know? You've proven yourself to be inept at situational awareness once today. Do you sincerely believe that I would not have detailed information on one of my newest employees? Besides, I think you'll find that the League knowing where you live is the least prominent problem you'll have today. After all, you have a failure on your hands." As he said this, his head motioned toward Izuku, limp on the chair, unconscious. Surajji sullied. Kurogiri was, by definition, right. He shouldn't have expected to have his life be private as an employer of a Villain League. And, technically, Izuku should already be dead. It seemed silly to forget that earlier- he pushed back those thoughts and rationalized that he was wanted from money. But his contract had been clear- Izuku Midoriya was wanted dead, for reasons listed as 'unimportant'. Surajji knew himself. He'd never been sent to kill a kid before, and he sure wasn't about to start putting them down now. He wasn't a monster- but he wasn't a diplomat, either. And it would take a hell of a lot of talking for him to get Izuku out of this alive.

"You sent me to kill a kid, Kurogiri. A quirkless kid. And you payed me nearly nothing to do it. And you didn't give me a choice whether or not I _wanted_ to do it. You're a rational person. You know there's no reason this kid should even be here right now." It didn't make sense at all, even when he had had time to understand the contract. Surajji would have never accepted it, anyway- it was a kid as the target. Every single one of his missions was an either ex- League or League-information having suspect. This was the only one he had in his 5 months with the league that had no connection, and was by FAR the lowest earning contract he'd ever been offered. And when he refused it, Kurogiri demanded it be done. Surajji mentally churned. He wasn't going down without of few words of his own. "You barely even gave me a contract. You demanded that I did it. And last time I checked, I ain't a regular employer. Hired help, bud. The only reason I did it was because you would've blown a casket and gave it to your 'sensei' to handle."

"True. However; you'd be remiss to know that neither I nor Sensei were the ones who put in the contract. Shigaraki gave it to me. And you can imagine that when Shigaraki wants something done, sensei will ensure that it is done. Whether or not I believe his motivations to be proper is irrelevant- we are 'villains', Surajji. You should know that very well." Punctuated to a T, Surajji chuckled, Kurogiri was. But that was where the admiration ended. Kurogiri was obviously being tight-lipped about the contract he gave out, most likely due to fear of Shigaraki going apeshit if he found out he didn't get what he expected. Surajji had never talked to Shigaraki in person, but from what he could tell, he was a spoiled, maniacal brat who threw tantrums when shit didn't go the way he wanted.

"So your term of villainy involves killing innocent kids? Do you even know why Shigaraki wanted Izuku dead? Because the information given to me on why was listed as 'unimportant', and that's _never_ happened before. What it seems like to me is, Shigaraki is in the middle of one of his tantrums, leaves the bar, sees a kid on the sidewalk, and decides killing him is going to further your cause. Do you not see how stupid that is?" It _was_ stupid. Because of a man child's tantrum, an innocent kid was now on death's row for simply existing in the wrong place at the wrong time. Surajji knew Kurogiri well enough to know there's no way he'd had no doubts about assigning this contract.

"Perhaps. Should you have properly completed your contract, I might've agreed with you. However; the current situation still stands. All Might failed to save him, and the amount of time he spent listening in to our conversation is unknown to a high enough point to which I would consider enough to validate a contract." Surajji raised his eyebrow. No way that was true- Kurogiri was on the stairs when he saw Izuku, and would've caught him earlier if he didn't know how long Izuku had been listening in.

"Bullshit, Kurogiri. You were obviously watching me the whole conversation. You only told me to go up the stairs to find Izuku when we were in the middle of talking about him- he couldn't have heard anything except shit he already knew. You're just scared of your 'Sensei' bearing down on you for not fulfilling one of Shigaraki's requests." _Snare trap_. Surajji grinned as he saw the shadow stiffen- he was right on the money. Now's not the time to allow for retaliation. "You know it ain't right, because you have common sense, but you assigned the contract not out of dedication to your cause but out of fear of punishment. You carry yourself like a gentleman, but I can hardly vouch that for a man who sees no problem killing kids." He's _this_ close to getting Izuku out of this. Surajji sees Kurogiri slightly recompose himself and turn to his side.

"It appears you are not quite as imperceptive as you let on. I will admit it is not in my personal taste to kill children, and that I would rather refrain from doing so. I do not wish the child harm- but the people who make the decisions at the League do. However; I cannot value my morals over those above me. You seem to value Izuku's life higher than most would, given his condition. However; the only way he makes it out of this alive is if you disappear, Surajji. And I will not let you disappear, not without dying first, because you still have many jobs to do for us. So, that leaves us with quite the conundrum, doesn't it? What would you have in mind, better than either your death or his?"

Surajji grimaced. This was a job half done.


	5. A Shadow on the Stairs (2)

He didn't want to be a monster. He was going nowhere from a school he couldn't remember, to a place forgotten by the world. Even from a young age, he knew- his life was worthless. Not with his wealth, not with his quirk, not with his ideas. He didn't fit into society. Society marked a path of denial around him and continued along its way. He was alive not by grit, or determination, but rather a deep conviction to unwillingly to see his life as meaningless. If he knew that much, there'd be no point dying. There'd be no point living, either. He didn't exist outside of the corner of his world, and the world outside of his corner didn't exist to him. He'd live long enough to regret it and die like nobody, and someone somewhere else would take up his mantle of worthlessness. He didn't matter anywhere, not to anyone else. He looked down at his hoodie, disgusted. The smell never went away- he carried it with him, after all. This quirk was always with him; and would always be, forever and ever, until he died, a reminder to why he was born to fail. No one knew what he'd done. No one would ever know. But he would. These hands of his had cast his suffering onto the few of those who had determination to save him. None of them remained. He remembered, faintly, on multiple occasions, his attempts to drown himself with his quirk. To seep into his own body, see the insides of a child beyond saving, and kill it. It never worked. He just became a monster again. He didn't want to be a monster.

These days, he barely heard anything besides static and gushing in his ears. If he tried to hear any more, it would just bounce off of him. It's better that way. Better that nothing get beneath him, or attempt to gel within him. At age 15, he'd seen enough of the world to know anyone could change. But the funny thing about change is, it effects those who act upon it- who seek it out. He sought nothing. So; to himself, he'd suppose, he would stay this way forever.

* * *

"So, that leaves us with quite the conundrum, doesn't it? What would you have in mind, better than either your death or his?" Kurogiri said, flatly. Surajji grimaced. What did he have in mind? He'd fought his way to get to the point of saving Izuku's life, but had no plan for what to do when he got there. There weren't many options available. Let him go, and Shigaraki might find out. Plus, as much as he was vouching for the kid's life, Surajji couldn't say whether or not Izuku would turn him over once he got free. Dying was off the table, he had things to live for. So then what? Surajji was stumped. "And now that you find reason, you can see that it is impossible for both of you to live. A man like yourself wouldn't die, not like this, especially since you've made a habit out of visiting your-" Surajji snapped. In an instant, he stretched out his sludge hand and surrounded Kurogiri. He may not be able to become the sludge monster, but he could do this much at least.

"You wouldn't FUCKING DARE bring that up. I know what you did, and you know that I know. I'm here because of you, and in a few seconds you could be nowhere because of me." Surajji's muck hand formed a ring around Kurogiri, almost in the form of a crab claw. He geared his head towards Kurogiri. "Sick bastard. Don't try to divert the conversation. I've been thinking, and I do have something in mind right about now. Two things, actually. One of 'em includes an empty bartender suit, but I think you wouldn't prefer that one." Kurogiri, being the shadow that he was, couldn't display many human-like attributes. However; despite that, Surajji could've sworn he saw Kurogiri gulp before putting back on his stern glare.

"I see. What would the latter option be, then?" Kurogiri wasn't stupid. Despite his quirk mainly being unknown, inside the League it was common knowledge that the portals he opens were actually attached to his body. Thus, they have physical mass and weight. Normally, this wouldn't matter, but he'd learnt through experience a peculiar thing about Surajji's sludge while letting him go through once.

His sludge stuck to Kurogiri. Not 'had a hard time passing through,' but literally stuck. It took over half an hour for Kurogiri to piece-by-piece teleport every individual piece from his portal off of Surajji's sludge. Surajji, naturally, was banned from ever using Kurogiri again, and thus many of his contracts were Mustafu-localized. What's more important to Kurogiri, obviously, is the situation. If Surajji enclosed his claw around him right now, he wouldn't nearly have enough time to teleport away. Surajji likely didn't know that his metal chamber was his weakness, but he'd have plenty of time to figure out something that was pretty intuitive. In the back of his mind, Kurogiri was slightly confused as to why Surajji had not fully transformed.

"You'll like the latter option. Look, Kurogiri, we're both reasonable. The kid's walking out of this alive. So am I. So, here's my option. I make him come with me to my contracts. He won't get away, trust me, he's quirkless. We do all the dirty work you want, and after my current load is done, then we decide. Kid wants to go free? Kid goes free. We tell him to keep it under the nose, and he'll say he escaped. The media story will be dead by then. Shigaraki will have forgotten about him by then as well. Kid wants to stay for some reason?" Surajji's mind stalled. Why would the kid want to stay? He'd be kidnapped, of course he'd take his first ticket out. "We, uhh...we'll find out then." FUCK, of course his train of thought derailed at exactly the wrong point. Still, his point had come across. Lucky for him, Kurogiri didn't have much say in negotiations.

"Do you think a child who faints at a shadow could possibly survive the encounters you have with your targets? Your targets loathe the League, Surajji. They will see a child with you and they will kill him first to make a point. Then that leaves us with all this wasted time. You seem to care for the idea of the innocent child, not the child itself, Surajji." It was all true. The kid wasn't exceptionally weak, but it had only taken 48 seconds for Surajji to nearly put him down, while his average target took about 85 seconds and a nasty quick flinging around like fireworks in an attempt to save themselves. It'd be hard to keep the kid alive in battle, but the least Surajji could do what was make sure he'd live to see it.

"I'd kill 'em before they got the chance, Kuro. I've got a perfect record (minus one, he noted), I wouldn't be here today talking to you if I didn't. I can manage." Surajji, in his full-sludge form, probably could. But he was no longer the sludge monster, and keeping his arms in this cone around Kurogiri was about all Surajji could muster. Try as he might, it came down to the simple fact that he straight up didn't have enough sludge. Pff. So fucking what? He'd manage. He always did.

"Perhaps so. So, as I may recall, your deal involves bringing an unknown, quirkless child you are ready to kill for to your targets. You will then single-handedly manage to subdue your target, and protect this child. This child, may I add, that is also an enemy of one of the heads of the League and the most wanted child in Mustafu. Am I correct in my summary?" Surajji smirked.

"Damn right you are." With that, Surajji released his sludge from around Kurogiri, who promptly teleported out of sight. Odd, he thought. Kurogiri was a very snide person, Surajji had assumed he was levy to throw in a comment on 'luck' or 'foolishness' or whatever. Of course, the possibility that Kurogiri simply turned him over to Shigaraki and he'd be dead in 24 hours wasn't exactly an unlikely scenario, either. Surajji looked over to the table. Izuku lay there, unmoved since he fainted. He'd heard nothing. "Dammit...now I gotta explained the whole thing over again," Surajji mumbled, hanging his head down. He began to chuckle. What on earth was he doing? Sighing, he lifted it up to Izuku once again. A smile krept on his face.

Mission accomplished.

* * *

Izuku was awoken by a sudden slam on the table. He felt his vision blur before he focused upon and familiar set of black shades.

"Sup, kid." Sup, kid. S u p , k i d. The man who had tried to kidnap and kill him, then referred to him as if he was property to be bought and sold had just flung a pair of granola bars on the table near him. The villain who had tried all that. The same villain who was just talking on the phone about-

"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!" It all came back rushing to Izuku's head. They had been talking about how he should die. And now, there was on the sludge monster on front of him, which meant he had chosen to kill Izuku himself and that any second now he-

"Same, kid. That's why we're both here," Surajji said. Of course the kid would panic, Surajji's acting buddy-buddy with a victim of double attempted murder and a kidnapping. God, why was he expecting the kid to keep his cool?

"No, I heard you on the stairs, you were talking about how you or someone named Kurogiri was going to kill me and then I blacked out and YOU'RE STILL HERE AND I'M STILL ALIVE SO-"

"EXACTLY KID, YOU'RE ALIVE. SHUT THE FUCK UP." Izuku backed down. Despite the fact that his mind was moving a mile a second, he didn't have the courage to get on Surajji's bad side again. Surajji internally groaned. Damn, why'd the kid have to miss his badass persuasive skills to keep him alive? That would make this ten times easier. But he didn't, and now here they are, so how the fuck does he explain this.? 'Hey, you're allowed to live but I'm making you come with me on killing trips so you don't die' ? The kid was expecting an answer, and Surajji had to give him one.

"Kid, there are some new rules in place. First of all, you're not dying." Surajji saw Izuku's mouth drop and could feel the kid's train of thought collapsing. Yeah, figures he wouldn't expect that. "Don't ask me why. Just know that you're alive because I don't want to kill you. Second, I'm not allowed to leave you here alone, ever. So, starting today, you'll be doing some accelerated learning with me in the field." In terms of how explanations go, Surajji thought, that was a pretty bad one. It didn't really tell Izuku why he was alive other than he was. He needed to get his point across. "Look, kid. You were assigned to me as a target. I wasn't planning to kill you, just to make your body limp and cold so when Kuro came to check on the hit you'd pass. One thing led to the other, All Might killed me, I somehow escaped, panickingly took control of some random brat's body, you showed up again. I was real pissed when you did that too, might've actually killed you for not letting me get away. All Might kills me again but worse this time, I take you in panic because the job still isn't done. Are you still following me?" Izuku nodded. So Surajji had never actually planned on killing him. It made sense, there was way too much time in between his regular fainting spells to make sense of him being alive. "Good. The job's done now. To the league, you're dead. To society, hey, maybe you're still out there. So that brings us back to our secret little problem. I can't let you go, because I need the extra set of hands to do my contracts. If I don't do them, I die. Kid, you've got gusto. I'd kill to keep you alive. But I wouldn't die to keep you alive, either. Not yet. Neither of us wants to die. So we're a team. We do the contracts, I get paid, I bail, you go free. You get it?" No. No, Izuku didn't want to get it. He should just be happy he's alive, but he still feels sick to his stomach. Surajji, he thought, was a nice person. Who did, awful, horrible things. Things he was going to force Izuku to do. But if Izuku didn't do them, he'd die, and Surajji would too. How many people could Izuku saved if he was dead? In his mind, more than he could if he was alive.

Surajji sullied at his silence. Of course the kid didn't want to. He hadn't wanted to, either. But he didn't have a choice now, Surajji had to make the kid come with him. Suddenly, it clicked to him. Surajji's targets were all ex-league information carriers. In other words, past criminals. Maybe they had changed, but Surajji knew that you could never abandon villainy and expect villainy to abandon you. "If makes you feel any better, kid, all my targets are ex-league. Villains. Villains don't change, they never will, not after everything they do or anything they change." Surajji knew that. "That means every time you kill of of them, you're saving who knows how many innocent people. You want to protect people, right? You were the exception, kid, not the norm. Do you get that?" Surajji's eyes weakened as he watched Izuku. The kid was probably having a moral crisis. Had everything gone to plan, neither of them would be here. Izuku could have gotten a childhood every kid deserved- one without tears. Izuku slowly lifted his head.

"Yeah...yeah. I get it." Izuku's voice was broken. It seemed like those words had been grated by steel in Izuku's mind before they had left. Surajji felt tears forming, just before he pushed them back. No child deserved to be given this choice. He had just done everything he hated, everything that led him to where he was.

Surajji would be damned if he let Izuku walk away from this even the tiniest bit scarred.


	6. Snow

Hey. From now on, I'm going to say who's POV it is in each section, because I ended up switching between the two for the sake of writing.

* * *

 **(Surajji POV)**

Surajji shifted. Izuku had agreed to go along with him. Not that he really had a choice, but it was reassuring to know the kid wasn't going to make it any harder than it already was. "So, kid, when I said 'starting today', I meant starting now. I already planned out the hit. You're probably gonna need something to cover your...everything, so...fuck it, just take my shades and jacket. Not like I'll need 'em. That'll be enough, not like anyone pays to look up nowadays." Surajji took off his jacket and shades and set them on the table. "Put it on and finish your food." Surajji watched Izuku stand up and walk over to the large mirror Surajji had. He brought back out his phone and opened his contacts - **'** **1 new message'.** He opened it.

 _From: Kurogiri_

 _Shigaraki has been informed of the hit. He asked me why it had taken so long, to which I said the target had inconvenient hobbies. He seemed troubled at first, but accepted the answer. He did; however, instruct me to not pay you, despite how little the contract was worth. He said if whoever did the hit wanted the money, they'll come to him. I'll leave that choice to your discretion. Note that; again, you are banned from using my gate. (Sent To:)_

 ** _(Chome Kanda Jinbōchō Chiyoda-ku, Tōkyō-to 101-0051. CMP 01.)_**

Surajji let out a sigh of relief. That was the confirmation he needed. With Shigaraki out of the picture, the only thing stopping this gig he's got going on is being caught, and he could at least control that himself. He looked back at the text - he probably shouldn't take his chances and go to the bar to get the money. Surajji didn't put near enough faith in Shigaraki's temperament to risk going to meet him to collect his payment. He'd be fine, the contract was only worth ¥15,000. Given that his normal contracts were worth much more, it wasn't a big fret since he'd spent roughly...no amount of time planning Izuku's hit. What _was_ more concerning was how his plan and intel would work now. He'd spent about two weeks peering his next target to see his hobbies, schedule, etc. He knew the game plan - Izuku didn't. And he didn't really have the leniency of time to fully explain it, so he can only hope that things wouldn't completely fall apart. It's impossible to plan for now. If he spends too much time in a fight protecting Izuku, he'll get outed. If he tries to overwhelm the target at once, Izuku could probably just run away. Izuku was the variable, and he had too many outcomes. _'Fuck, this is going to be hard,'_ he thought. How does he control a variable while still executing the plan? _"Fine. I'll figure it out later."_ Surajji looked up to Izuku.

He grinned. "See? Told ya, kid. A pair of shades and a hoodie cover up better than any quirk." Izuku Midoriya stood in front of the shattered mirror wearing Surajji's over sized wet hoodie, and glasses that nearly fell off his eyes. Notably, however, were the completely dry pants and school shoes in contrast with his upper half. You could say he looked like a homeless person with half a home. Well...looking at it now, perhaps it wasn't the most elaborate disguise for the most searched for kid in Mustafu. His smile fell. "Yeah, I might actually need to get you an actual pair of clothes. Eh." Surajji chuckled. "Guess we'll just have to get em while we're there." Izuku was silent. "C'mon kid, lighten up a little! Jeez, you need a sense of humor."

"We're not killing on this one, right?" If anything, the kid kept his ideals _(you sure fuckin bet I just did that)_. That didn't help his situation though, Izuku wasn't gonna make through if half the time he was having a damn moral crisis. Plus, even though he'd agreed to go, the chance of him trying to running away was still pretty unknown. Surajji would have to prepare for that.

"Daisy shops, kid. Daisy shops. You ain't. I am." If anything, the kid had a glare to match the one his friend had. "I know you don't care for it. But it's gonna happen." He handed Izuku a knife. "Take it. Target's got a nasty quirk, and he'll probably go after you." Izuku remained motionless, staring him down. "Kid, if you don't take the fucking knife you'll be buried with it." Izuku knew he wasn't serious- but his tone gave him enough confidence that it wasn't completely off the table. He grabbed the knife and slid it into his hoodie pouch, all while staring Surajji down. "See? You get it already. Fast learner." He walked towards the door and Izuku followed him.

Target #1: Ex- employer of his contractor who managed to cover his tracks by paying for a look overhaul and getting a job at a high-end clothing store.

Details: Make sure he never gets a chance to sell them out.

* * *

 **(Izuku POV)**

Despite Izuku's current situation, the weather seemed to move along with itself. He had apparently slept until late at night, which he assumed was when Surajji would want to do these kinds of things, anyways. The part of the city he was in was already empty, but even so he couldn't recognize any familiar surroundings that would help him know where he was. He walked in front of Surajji, slightly to his right, per Surajji's request. _'Looks like our mistrust is pretty mutual, huh?'_ Izuku thought. Surajji made it seem like he was going to play some amount of a part in this hit, but he hadn't specified what or how. From the looks of it, Surajji didn't know either. They walked in silence for about 15 minutes. Izuku didn't ask, but he found it odd that no one passed them. Even if it was late at night, it seemed extremely unlikely (and unlucky for Izuku) that no one would see them.

"I have no idea what to do." Izuku suddenly stopped and turned to Surajji. What? What did he mean, he didn't know what to do? Didn't he have a plan? Surajji looked back at him. "You heard me. I have no idea what to do. I had a whole plan set up for this hit and now it's all ruined because you're here. I'm trying to think, and I'm drawing every which way to a blank." Izuku gulped. As he suspected- he was a complete liability. He knew Surajji likely wouldn't kill him anymore, the man seemed too far gone in his decision making to do that now. But Surajji's decision was hurting both of their chances of getting out of this they way they wanted. Izuku could see it in Surajji's eyes- he was completely and utterly stumped. His mind racked as they continued walking. This was bad. If this hit didn't work it's game over for both of them, before it even starts. Suddenly, an idea flashed in his mind. ' _That could work, right?_ _Could it?'_ He gulped.

"Surajji?" His brow raised.

"What?"

"I think I have a plan."

* * *

Surajji seemed to nearly choke on his own breath. "Ah, Jesus...you know, kid, I _thought_ you were crazy, but you're downright maniacal." Izuku winced. He knew it- it was a dumb idea, he shouldn't have spoke at all, this is why he never gives his own ideas- "And I fucking love it."

Izuku stopped. "Huh?" He must've heard wrong, or maybe he didn't articulate himself clearly, "No, I don't think you understand, it was really dumb of me to say that and-"

"Can it, 'zuku. Heh, You're one crazy son of a bitch, you know that? I said I like it, and I sure as hell understood it and why you think it's batshit crazy. That's why I like it so much." He- Surajji liked his plan? Like, his actual, real plan that he had just said?

"But then you'd have to-" Surajji groaned, interrupting Izuku.

"Nope. No more buts. You said it, I liked it, and now we're doing it. No backing out. Trust me- change a plan one too many times and you end up without one at all. This is plan A. Now let's go."

 _They were actually going to use his plan._ Izuku held his breath for what seemed like an eternity before he turned to follow Surajji. _"Really no going back now, huh?"_ Surajji was dead-set on going through with it. What if something went wrong? What if he got injured? Surajji wouldn't have anyway to heal him. Surajji didn't have anyway to heal himself, either. It would have to be executed perfectly- any misstep and the whole operation went south. They needed some kind of backup, at least- there's no way it would go flawlessly, he'd definitely mess something up on his end. if he messes up, Surajji cant do his part. There has to be an alternative.

"Surajji?" The man turned to him.

"What?"

"What should I do if something goes wrong? Like, what's Plan B?" Surajji stopped. He began to open his mouth, then shut it. Izuku continued- "I know this is the plan but I really think we need to think about it a bit more, because neither of us heal ourselves in this situation." No response. "We'd don't have to change it, but I don't want...us, to get hurt. Please, this is something we have to do." Izuku tightened his fist. Why wasn't Surajji listening to him now? "Surajji, you have to be with me on this. I need this to end well as much as you do-"

"No, you don't, kid." Izuku stopped himself.

Of course, huh? How stupid could he be? He wasn't the hero in this game. Surajji needed this to end well for himself. All of the weight here was on Surajji.

Surajji could've easily killed him and been done with it.

Surajji could've pawned him off to Kuro and been done with it.

At every single turn, Surajji has ensured Izuku would be given another chance- and Izuku was pressing him like HE was the hero. His felt his eyes begin to prickle. Izuku looked away.

They continued for about another 5 minutes in complete silence. Surajji stopped again. Izuku looked up and saw him staring somewhere. He tried to follow Surajji's gaze, but before he could finish Surajji shook himself and continued walking.

Silence.

It had begun to snow. Not surprising, really. It was easily below 0. Thinking of it, that's probably why no one was out. Snowdrops had built on every surface, a thin coating upon the world. It was...beautiful. And no one would see it except for them. _"Funny"_ , Izuku thought. This harsh weather, which stifled heat and froze every surface, was stunning once you looked at its' effects. Tomorrow, children would play in the snow. They would build snowmen and have snowball fights, and enjoy the pleasures of it- such a simple thing. But none of them would thank the storm. The storm would leave being scowled at.

"We're here, Izuku."

Izuku was in a storm. Ahead of him, he heard Surajji mumble something else. Probably nothing.

* * *

 **(Surajji POV)**

Surajji took no mind to the snow. He could sense Izuku behind him, though, feasting on it with his eyes. He'd cried. Surajji could tell. But something about the snow had dried his tears. When was the last time Surajji had sympathized with someone? He felt a tightness in his chest. Likely nervousness. After what felt like an eternity, they reached their destination.

"We're here. Izuku."

 _"You deserve this to end well much more than I do."_


End file.
